


Prophecy Breaker

by CantSpeakFae



Series: The Scars Souvenir [9]
Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: Episode Revisit + Revision, Written from Xander's P.O.V
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-20
Updated: 2019-03-20
Packaged: 2019-11-26 06:00:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18176768
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CantSpeakFae/pseuds/CantSpeakFae
Summary: Xander’s suddenly reminded of that book he’d been forced to read for English. Buffy looks like Ophelia.





	Prophecy Breaker

Xander feels like a soldier marching to his last battle, going against every instinct he has, everything in him screaming to move in the opposite direction, but he doesn’t. He shows up at Angel’s apartment and bangs his fist against the door until it opens, and he stares down the vampire standing on the other side.   
  
“Oh. Look who’s here.” Angel greets him, coolly. Animosity from both sides, then. Xander gets the sense that he’s not the only one revved up with petty jealousy from time to time but now isn’t the time for the weird cobra posturing and the subtle snarking. This is bigger than both of them. This is Buffy’s very life.   
  
“Mind if I come in?” Xander asks, stepping past him anyway. Not dead, doesn’t need a direct invitation.  
  
Angel shuts the door behind him, exasperated. “Make yourself at home.”   
  
Screw the small talk. Xander cuts straight to the point.  
  
“She’s gone.”   
  
“What do you mean?” Angel asks and Xander has half a mind to stake him right then and there. Might’ve, if they didn’t need him to ensure that Buffy made it out the other side, alive and well and unharmed and all the other words for okay.   
  
“Buffy,” Xander says, slowly, so deadboy can’t miss the point this time. “She’s gone to fight the master.”   
  
“He’ll kill her,” Angel said.  
  
And Xander thought he was slow on the uptake.   
  
“Rumor has it.” Xander agrees, bouncing on the balls of his feet. He’d been expecting more feeling from the guy. More anger, less, 'Guess that’s that.' “Only we're not gonna let it happen.”  
  
Angel shoots him an incredulous look. “Well, what do you propose we do about it?”  
  
 _For the love of -_  
  
“Look, I know you can find this Master guy. He's underground, right? Take me to him.”   
  
And Angel laughs. He has the nerve to /laugh/ at Xander, shaking his head, disbelief in his eyes. And Xander feels all that resentment and anger like he never had before. This was the big hero? The vampire with a soul? Lotta good it was doing him because he was just standing there and laughing at Xander for wanting to do something to help Buffy.  
  
“You're way outta your league, kid. The Master'll kill you before you can even breathe. If you're lucky.”   
  
Alright. Angel doesn’t wanna mince words. That’s just fine with him. Xander reaches into his pocket, pasting a smile on his face. He can’t see himself, but he just gets the feeling that it’s the same kinda smile that Tony gets before he starts taking off his belt. That doesn’t do much to boost his confidence, but...  
  
“How can I say this clearly?” He asks, yanking a cross out of his pocket. Angel snarls at him and Xander advances toward him until Deadboy falls back against the couch. “I don’t like you. At the end of the day, I pretty much think you’re a vampire.”   
  
He lowers the cross then, just enough for Angel to be able to look up at him and know that he means what he’s saying.   
  
“But Buffy’s got this big ol’ yen for you. She thinks you’re a real person. And right now? I need you to prove her right.”  
  
Angel shakes his head, looking up at him like he’s all knowing and enlightened. “You’re in love with her.”   
  
State the obvious, much? Anyone with eyes could see that. Xander loves her. He’s in love with her, yeah, maybe. But if that’s the takeaway, then Xander’s starting to doubt if Angel is all the way there. Maybe he traded half of his brain for his soul, and Xander gives him an incredulous look right back.  
  
“Aren’t you?”  
  


* * *

  
These tunnels haven’t gotten anymore inviting since Jesse. And they haven’t gotten around to installing those maps, either, apparently, so he and Angel keep getting lost. Xander’ still gripping the cross, ready to use it at the first sign that Angel is going to bolt, but Angel seems more or less in on the plan, now, looking in both directions of an intersection, and then walking past him.   
  
“This way.”   
  
Xander shoots him a look.  
  
“What?” Angel asked, annoyed.   
  
“You were looking at my neck.”  
  
“What?”  
  
“You were checking out my neck!” Xander snapped, starting to follow after him. If Deadboy is getting any ideas on how to get out of here, by knocking Xander outta commission, well, he’s got another thing coming. “I saw that!”   
  
“No, I wasn’t!”   
  
“Just keep your distance, pal.”  
  
“I wasn't looking at your neck!”  
  
“I told you to eat before we left.”  
  


* * *

  
This place is a freaking Labyrinth, and not the kind with David Bowie and the muppets. It’s dark and cold and Xander’s freaking out when a light suddenly shines out of an adjoining tunnel. Too bright to be nothing and Xander turns his head, giving Angel a slightly frightened look.   
  
“What was that?”   
  
“It’s too late. He’s gone up.”   
  
Every nerve in Xander’s body screams “Buffy” and they both bolt. Angel’s faster, he’s got longer legs and no need to breathe, so he gets there ahead of Xander. By the time that Xander reaches the lair entrance, Angel’s already halfway to where Buffy is lying in a pool of water, but Xander just...freezes. Angel pulls her out of the water, her golden hair fanned out, her white dress soaked and clinging to her… and Xander’s suddenly reminded of that book he’d been forced to read for English. Buffy looks like Ophelia, and a haunting line rings in his head. “Incapable of her own distress.”   
  
Angel’s listening for breathing. Nothing. He looks back at Xander, who’s still staring at Buffy. She looks so young and so small.   
  
“She’s dead!” Angel says, his voice frantic.   
  
Xander swallows hard. No. No, he’s not losing another friend to these fucking tunnels. He shakes his head.   
  
“No, she’s not dead.”   
  
“She’s not breathing.”   
  
“But if she drowned,” Xander says, desperately. “Uh, there’s a shot! CPR!”   
  
“You have to do it. I have no breath.”   
  
Super useful vampire. Xander takes off his jacket, scrambling down to Buffy, laying it over her like a blanket. He kneels down and looks at her, for a second. He’s never been religious, but if there’s a God, they’re hearing prayers from him now as he puts his mouth on hers and starts to try and blow air into her lungs, fumbling internally with the basic mechanics of this. He’d been certified but the class had been such a bore and he doesn’t know if he’s going to do this right. He sits back up and starts to pump his hands against her chest.  
  
“C’mon. C’mon!”   
  
He does the breathing, again. Breathe, Buffy. C’mon. You gotta breathe. He pumps her chest, his thoughts and his mouth moving at the same time, no longer filtered.   
  
“C’mon! Breathe! Breathe!”   
  
Angel looks down in sorrow, the looks back up. Not doing anything to help. Not saying anything. Screw him. Xander doesn’t need him. He’s going to save her - Buffy _can’t_ die. Xander keeps pushing against her chest.   
  
“C'mon!”   
  
He goes until his arms are tired. Until it’s too long - they weren’t fast enough. He sits back, pushing away from her. For a minute, there’s only silence. Xander feels the tears welling up in his eyes and thinks that if he ever makes it past these tunnels, he’s going to find the Master and kill him, himself. Doesn’t matter that he’s only human, doesn’t matter that he’ll probably die trying. He’s gonna kill him, he’s gonna do it for Buffy and for Jesse, and for -  
  
Buffy opens her eyes and gasps. She lies still, for a moment, looking around, and Xander could **_scream_**.  
  
“Buffy!”   
  
She turns her head to the side and coughs up a bunch of water. Alive. Alive. He did it. He… he looks over at Angel and even grins at him, somehow happier to see Deadboy when Buffy is breathing again. Xander reaches out and strokes her forehead, startling her.   
  
“Buffy.” He says again, lamely. But he doesn’t know what else there is to say.  
  
“Xander?” She asks, her voice so small and faint.  
  
“Welcome back.” He tells her and, in unison, both he and Angel start to help her up. “Easy, easy.”   
  
“The Master?” Buffy asks, as soon as she’s at her feet. Her eyes are still wild, dazed, but not confused. Just gripping her bearings.   
  
“He’s already gone up,” Angel tells her.   
  
Buffy starts to pull away. Ever the soldier. It terrifies Xander. She just got back up, she can’t march out and -  
  
“No. You’re still weak!” Xander protests, giving Buffy pause. But a little smile curls her mouth and she’s shining brighter than he’s ever seen her, shaking her head.  
  
“No. No, I feel strong. I feel different.”   
  
She looks back at them. Still her. Still Buffy. No matter what happens now, the world didn’t lose her.   
  
“Let’s go!”  
  
 _Things are gonna be different, he’s sure, but at least things aren’t going to be different without her._

 


End file.
